Hello and Happy New Year!

I know it’s a bit late in January to wish you a HNY but this is my first post since 2020 began so I have to say it, especially because it’s a biggie.

Not only is 2020 the most beautifully symmetrical number that just has to herald wonderful things for all of us, but it’s also the start of a new decade.

And why does that count?

It counts because a decade is a marker. It marks the passage of a significant chunk of time. It gives us something by which to measure our progress – not in order to beat ourselves up when we realise we haven’t quite accomplished what we set out to, but in order to gauge whether we’re being true to ourselves and whether we’re honouring and cherishing our dreams, and in order to change tack if we notice we’ve been abandoning ourselves.

It’s so easy to put our dreams on the back burner, isn’t it? Work takes over. Family commitments take over. Self-sabotage takes over. Procrastination takes over.

But I’m here to remind you that you’re worth it and that this new year and this new decade count.

As I wrote in my previous post just before Christmas, Deconstructing Our Decade, the last decade was pretty significant for me, although I’m not sure I realised it at the time. It’s only by taking stock that we can see how far we’ve come, and how far we’d like to go.

This new decade is going to be significant too. How can it not be? I’ll move out of my forties and into my fifties. I may even need to change the name of this blog! Can I still write under the title of From Forty With Love after turning 50?

At the end of this decade, I’ll be 58. And where would I like to be by then?

I’d like to have published more books, because one simply isn’t enough, especially for someone who’s a writer, who’s always been a writer, who longs to write and who can write incredibly fast (I’m typing this at top speed and aim to publish it within minutes!). I’d like to finish the book I started in my early forties but never managed to complete and I’d like to write novels and books of poetry.

Hurrah! It feels so good to declare that on this blog, especially since most of the intentions I’ve blogged about over the years have come true.

I also know that if I don’t write more books, I’ll be incredibly sad, devastated in fact, because I will have abandoned one of my deepest desires and neglected a talent I believe I have.

I’d also like to grow my business into a truly sustainable, fulfilling, profitable and impactful venture that benefits lots of people and enables my husband and I to enjoy wonderful adventures together and to appreciate some of the freedom that comes with not having children.

I’d also like to muster the courage to get a dog – a simple step for some but a giant leap for me that stirs up all manner of fears around feeling trapped, over-committed and around not being able to love a furry friend (which, deep down, I know I can).

They are a few of my intentions. I have more but I’ll save those for another day, because what I really want to do is to stress why it’s important to identify our hopes and dreams and to take steps to make them happen.

It’s important because life is precious, you know that.

Life is short.

Life and good health aren’t guaranteed.

As some of you know, I’m grieving right now because my mother’s health and mental capacity are deteriorating. We are losing her, slowly, and it’s incredibly sad. It’s also worrying. My mum is losing her memory as her mother did before her, so how long have I got before my mind deteriorates? How long has any one of us got?

There’s no need to panic or stress about not having enough time, but how we spend our time is how we spend our life so are you spending your time in a way that honours your dreams and makes the most of all your talents?

I’m going to close this blog here – sooner than I would normally, I usually write a few thousand words! – because I’m hosting a webinar tonight that I need to prepare for and that I also want to tell you about: Create Your 2020 Vision & Design Your Dream Decade (if you missed it, don’t worry. Sign up at that link or put a comment below and I’ll send you a recording.)

You’ll also find the links below to a series of How to Fall in Love webinars I’ve been running. The final one is this Thursday – Change Your Dating Dynamic. And you’ll find details of the wonderful courses and retreats I’m hosting this year, designed to support you to prioritise your hopes and dreams and to create a fulfilling life and relationship.

To close, I’d love to share a video with you that I recorded down at the beach in the first few days of 2020. It’s not one of my professional videos. I have no make-up on, the lighting isn’t great and I’m holding the camera myself.

But it’s real. It’s vulnerable. And it’s prompted some lovely feedback. In it, I explain why the new decade matters to me.

Video: Why the new decade matters.

Sending love and light for this new year and decade x

Free Resources & Dates for Your Diary

How to Fall in Love Webinar Series:

Recording of Create Your Healthy Foundations

Recording of Face Your Fears & Change Your Patterns

Change Your Dating Dynamic, Jan 16, 1 pm. Click here for more information.

My transformational How to Fall in Love small group online course starts on January 20th, 2020. Prioritise your romantic life, change your relationship patterns and find love.

My first How to Fall in Love Dorset retreat of 2020 is from Feb 28-March 2. Earlybird offer is available until Jan 17th. Four places left!

And we’re back to Turkey in October for another fabulous Love Retreat.

Join my free Facebook group, Being Real, Becoming Whole.

Download Chapter 1 of How to Fall in Love for free here.